Favre is the ultimate iron man

[The Leaper]

I've always felt that iron-man streak are the least impressive of all records in pro sports, the one record that doesn't reflect any talent whatsoever.

You don't think it takes a lot of talent...both physically and mentally...to remain in the starting lineup of a profession sports team for 15+ straight years? In actuality, longevity is a better sign of a player's true natural talent than most other stats. Great seasons can be a factor of circumstances...great careers are a factor of talent.

Ripken exemplifies this: he was a slightly better than average hitter who accumulated impressive lifetime totals through sheer perseverance. Nothing wrong with that, but nothing to get all starry eyed about either.

Ripken was an excellent baseball player. You must not have watched him that closely...or simply can't understand the greatly inflated numbers of today's steroid era compared to the game from 20+ years ago.

His offensive numbers weren't amazing, but they were steady and reliable....a .280 batting average, 20+ homers, 90+ RBI for the bulk of his career. He hit nearly as many homers in his career as Dave Winfield or Andre Dawson...who are both viewed as great power hitters. Ripken hit 180 more homers than Robin Yount, and 115 more than George Brett...who are among his infield contemporaries. Infielders didn't hit homers like Ripken did very often prior to the mid 90s.

His defense was also very good. In 1990, he played in 161 games as a shortstop and commited THREE errors. Take a minute and let that sink in. The ridiculous thing was that he didn't win a gold glove that year. His career fielding percentage is better than Derek Jeter.

[hoosier]

I've always felt that iron-man streak are the least impressive of all records in pro sports, the one record that doesn't reflect any talent whatsoever. Ripken exemplifies this: he was a slightly better than average hitter who accumulated impressive lifetime totals through sheer perseverance. Nothing wrong with that, but nothing to get all starry eyed about either. Overall, his reputation vastly exceeds his real accomplishments, IMO--way overrated. Favre is different, of course, in that he has talent as well. And football is different from baseball in that injuries are so frequent.

I respectfully disagree.

In maintaining the ironman status, the athlete both needs to know how to keep himself in playing shape as well as know how to avoid injuries. Surely, some injuries cannot be avoided no matter what preventative measures the athlete uses.

I also think the ironman shows quite a bit of mental toughness. Surely, there are times where the athlete has to "Play through the Pain" as well as overcome mental fatigue.

I was trying to distinguish between talent and the durability/discipline thing. Having a body and a regimen that enables you to avoid injury or recover quickly isn't, IMO, a talent in the same way that being able to hit, throw, or run remarkably well is. Ripken exemplified durability and discipline, but I really think his hitting talent was overblown because of his remarkable durability. Yes, he was one of the better offensive shortstops of his generation, along with Yount and Trammell, but that's in part because in his generation SS wasn't envisioned as a power-hitter's position. For a couple of years he was among the best offensive players in the AL, but he also had a fair number of mediocre offensive seaons.